The Solar System

Comments (0)

Transcript of The Solar System

The Solar SystemSince the beginning of time, people have been fascinated by the Sun, the Moon, the stars, and other objects in the sky. Ancient astronomers who gazed at the sky observed that some of the objects moved. They called these objects "planets".Planets orbit the Sun. The planets, their moons, and smaller objects such as comets and asteroids that also orbit the Sun, all form the Solar System.The SunThe closest planet to the SunMercury At almost thirty-six million miles away from the Sun, Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun. The ancient Romans named this small, rocky planet after Mercury, their swift messeger god, probably because it moved faster than the other planets as it travel around the Sun. Because it is so close to the Sun, it is extremely hot on Mercury, and the planet cannot sustain life. Mercury's surface is full of craters, and its atmosphere is weak. Venus is the second closest planet to the Sun. Its distance from the Sun is more than sixty-seven million miles. Venus is similar in size and composition to our Earth and it is sometimes referred to as Earth "twin." Venus is also close to Earth, and it is covered by clouds that reflect sunlight. For that reason, it appears as the brightest planet in the sky. Because of its beauty, the ancient Romans named this planet after Venus, the goddess of love.VenusThe moonless planetEarthThird from the Sun is ourhome planet, Earth. Its distance from the Sun is almost ninety-three million miles. Earth is the only known planet to have life. Its atmosphere contains air, which together with water, provides living things with their basic needs in order to survive.Most of our planet is covered by water. When ocean water is heated by the Sun, it turns into vapor and goes up into the atmosphere. This causes weather patterns across the planet, and the weather conditions we know as rain, storms, and others develop.There are eight planets in the Solar System. Our home Earth, is one of the four rocky planets. The other three are Mercury, Venus, and Mars. The remaining four planets are called "gas giants" because they lack a solid surface, and most of their masses are in the form of gas. They are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.The Sun is our closest star, and it is the center of the Solar System. The Sun has inspired many stories around the world. Some ancient cultures believed the Sun was a god and built temples to worship it.The Sun supports life on Earth by providing sunlight, which is our primary source of energy.Sunlight allows plants to live and grow. Plants are the main source of food for many animals and for people.The Sun also plays an active role in determining the seasons, ocean currents, and the weather.

Written by Mario Castroread by Valentina Prusza HamanaMarsMars is also called the "red planet". Its red color is probably the result of volcanic activity and many dust storms. Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the last of the rocky planets. It is close to 142 million miles away from the Sun.The ancient Romans associated the color red with blood, which was one of the symbols of Mars, their god of war.The decided to name the red planet after their god of war.SaturnThe fifth planet from the sun, Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system, and it is the first of the "gas giants." By contrast, most of its forty-nine moons are rocky.The gases that make up Jupiter are mainly hydrogen and helium, which are mostly the same gases that make up the Sun.To the ancient Romans, Jupiter was the father of all gods. Because of its size, they named this planet after him.The fifth planet from the sun, Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system, and it is the first of the "gas giants." By contrast, most of its forty-nine moons are rocky.The gases that make up Jupiter are mainly hydrogen and helium, which are mostly the same gases that make up the Sun.To the ancient Romans, Jupiter was the father of all gods. Because of its size, they named this planet after him.JupiterUranus

The first planet discovered with the help of a telescope, Uranus is more than a billion and a half miles away from the Sun and, like the other "gas giants," it is composed mainly of hydrogen and helium and has many moons.Uranus is also called an "ice giant" because it contains frozen water in its atmosphere.Following the Roman tradition, the astronomers who discovered this planet named it after Uranus, the Roman god of the sky and Saturn's father.NeptuneThe last "gas giant" is also the other "ice giant" because it has water in its atmosphere. There are huge windstorms in Neptune. Some of the storms are the size of Earth! Neptune is close to three billion miles away, that it takes Neptune 165 Earth years to complete an orbit of the Sun!Because of its ocean blue color, this planet was named after Neptune, the Roman god of the sea.Smaller Bodies in the Solar SystemDwarf planets, comets, and asteroids are smaller bodies in the Solar System.Dwarf planets are like planets but much smaller.Although first considered a planet, Pluto is one of the three known dwarf planets. The others are Eris and Ceris. Comets are very bright when they come close to the Sun, and most show a tail. Probably the most famous comet is Comet Halley. It usually comes closest to Earth every seventy-six years.Asteroids are mostly rocky objects found between Mars and Jupiter. All these objects form a type of belt as they orbit the Sun. They are also known as the "asteroid belt".Space ExplorationSince the 1950s, the Unaited States and other countries have been sending space missions to explore the Solar system The United States was able to put two astronauts on our Moon for the first time in 1969. The two astronauts, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, were part of the Apollo 11 mission.There have been other unmaned missions to most of the planets and their moons. A lot of what we now know about most of the planets and the Solar System is because of the photographs these spacecraft have sent us during their trips.In the not too distant future, perhaps astronauts will be able to land on Mars. Space exploration continues to fascinate many would-be explorers who would like to become astronauts one day.